Plural-lamp-holding device.



R. B. BEIBTJAMIDIB PLURAL lLAMP HOLDING DEVICE. APPLIoATIoN HLBD Dmza, 19'07.

manned Dec. 7, 1909.

R. B. BENJAMIN. PLURAL' LAMP HOLDING DBVIOE. APPLmATIN FILED DB0. 2s, 19071 942,242. Patented Deel?, 1909 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- y www STATES lATENT GFFICE.

nEUBnN B. BENJAMIN, or CHICAGO', ILLINOIS, AssIGNOn 'ro BENJAMIN ELEornIo MANUFAOTURING COMPANY, or cnIcAeo, ILLINOIS, a CORPORATION or ILLINOIS.

PLuaaL-LAMP- HOLDING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Applicationled December 28, 1907. Serial No. 408,409.

ToaZZ 'tt may concern:

x .Be itknovvn that I Riemann;JB.v BENJAMIN,

a citizen of the United States, residing at "'Chicago,in the. county of Cook and State of Illinois, have inventedv new and useful Im-l provements in Plural-Lamp-I-Ioldingt Devices, of which'th'e following isa ful-l,clear,

l concise, and ex'act description,'reference being had to the accompanying'drawlng, form;

ing apart offthis specification.

'This invention relates to improvements in 'plural lamp-holding devices the principal Object of the-invention being to provide a be' varied tor suit-the requirements of the user. 'f

" In Vthe accompanyin ldrawin s, Figure'l isia plan View of a some ofthe interior construction; Fig. 2 is a vview of this form of the device, partly sectional on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, looking in 'thedirection of the arrows, and partly elfe,- l vational, theicasing being shown 1n section;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1,-but showing a slightly different form Of the device;

curingthe saine ,to the 'threaded end of av pipe or the like', thismeans comprising a neck formed bydrawing the light material of the back-plate down. around a central opening as at 13,V and securing therein `an interiorly-threaded bushing 14. The method of securing the threaded bushing in` place in the back-plate consists informing the 'bush' ing with a groove 15 extending therearound and rolling themetal of thevba'ck-plate into this groove. This method affords a cheap yet strong construction. Means are provided whereby the parts' of :the casing, cor'1.

terior` of the device.y This'detachable secur- 'The metal'f vis drawn in to form. suitable evlce em Odying the featuresof invention, the back plate, which forms the upper side of the casing being partly broken away to expose to vieu'1 `sis-ting of the. bowl-shaped shell 10 Vand back-plate 11,.. may be readily secured togetlier when desired and as readily detached oneffrom the other toafford access to the ining means consists of a bayonet 'connection comprisin a `series ,of Ipins 16Y on one o these mem ers and -a series of corresponding bayonetslots or grooves 17 on the4 other part.

grooves 17a running from the edge of the part Into the bayonet slots for the purpose olf permitting entry of the pins into these s ots. i

The shel110 is provided with a plurality 76 of openings arranged around the axis thereof and regularly spaced,- neach -of these Openlngs being adapted to receive a lamp `and having suitable lamp-holding means cor-Jl responding therewith. As shown, the den/ vice is adapted for thereceptio'n `of Edison lamps, and withthis end in view there is inserted lin each of the openings an insulating bushin 19, these bushings .being interiorly threae into threaded metallic shells 20 for the re-f cept-ion of Edison lamp bases.v These shells form the outer lamp-terminal engaging contacts. Corresponding meansfor engagm the center terminals of the lamps is provide 85 by an annular. contact member 21 which extends around the insulating base 22. 'This base is centrally positioned .in the casing 'and secured' 1n place therein by means of aA bolt 23 passing centrally through the casing y90 and carrying a nut 24'uponv its outer end. This ring. contact 21 is secured to the base' by suitable screws 25 passing through the base -and into inwardly-bent lugs 26 on the plate. 21, these lugs extending into recesses 27 pro- 95',

vided therefor in the base 22. Another lug 28 is provided extending.into a recess 29 and having va binding-screwq 30 extending through the basev thereinto. The head of this blnding-screw 30 is on the up'per side of 10C the base and 1s accessible when thecasing is separated froligftheback-plate.

Each ofthe threaded contact shells 20 is provided with anintegral tongue 31, these tongues 31 being all secured, by means of 105 screws 32 'or' other suitable means, to an electrically-conductive.wstructure, this structure having a suitable binding screw for the accommodation of a lead as hereinafter explaiued. In the form of the device vs'hownllo Patented nee. 7,1909. K

d and having screwedthere- 4vnizdiijl'reidevice this structure' is made up` of niet-gihmstrips 35 secured. at their opposite the tongues of the socket shells,

crossing or meeting at a central point and secured together by an eyelet 36 passing through all `-of the strips and interiorly threaded to receive a binding-screw 37. By means of this binding-screw a lead may be connected with all of the contact shells of thel device. If desired this 'conductive structure may be omitted and in lieu thereof the lead would,I in such a case, subdivide and extend toeach of the lugs 31 separately,tlie screws'32 serving as binding-screws for connecting these ends of the leads with the sockets.

In assembling the partsv of a device made np in accordance with the present invention, a bushing 19 will be passed outwardly through each of the openings in the shell 10, being prevented from completely passing therethrough by reason of the fact that these bushings are of larger diameter at their inner than at their outer ends.

It will be seen that in this device the lamps are carried by the shell 10, and that when this shell 10 is detached from the backplate 11 the body of the device may be taken down, carrying with it the lamps, access beingthus atfordcd to the biiiding-screws for makin connection with the leads. If it -be desire to change the number of lamps carried by the device it becomes only necessary to take down the body of the device,l remove the lamps from the sockets, withdraw the base and attached parts from the casing, and replace these parts in another casing which may be in every way similar lto the casing which was first used except that it is provided with a greater or lesser number of lamp-receiving openings. i

By carryingjn stock a quantity of casings havin various numbers of openings, a supply ot insulating bushings, and a supply of bases with contacts secured thereto, it is possible for a dealerto readily supply the demand for sockets having any desired number of'lamps within the limit of capacity .imposed by the size of the device.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a plural lamp-holding device, a casing comprising a back-plate and a` bowlshaped shell having lampreceiving-openings, an insulating bushing in each of said openL ings having shoulders for preventing said l bushingsirom passing outward through said openings, a threaded socket-'shell in each of said bushings, means supported wholly by said shells, vfor electrically connecting all of said `shells tsgether, aninsulating base with- 'ings, means in each of said openings for insuin said casinof, and means carried by said basevvfor conducting current to the center terminals of the lamps, said base bein supported independently of said shells an said shell-connecting means.

2. In a plural lanip-holdin device, a base, a casing comprising a back-pte and a bowlshaped shell having lamp-receiving openings,

a threaded socket-shell in each. of said openlating the socket-shell from the casing, each of said socket-shells having an integral tongue extending therefrom, means supported by said tongues and located between said base and said backlate for electrically connecting all of said socket-shells together,

means independent of said shells and said connecting means for' securing said base in position in said casing, and an annular contact carried by said base for engaging with the center terminals of thel lamps..

3. In a plural lamp-holding device, a casing comprising a back-plate and a bowlshaped shell supported thereby havin lampreceiving o enings, an insulatin bus incr in each of sai openinofs, a threads socket-shell in each of-said bus iings, an insulating base within said bowl-shaped shell, a contact carried by said' base for engagement with the center terminals of the lamps, and means for connecting all of said .threaded shells together electrically, said base being supported independently of said connectinr1r means.-

4. In a plural lamp-holding device, a casing comprising a back-plate and. a bowlshaped shell having lamp-receiving openings,

an insulatino' 'bushing in each of said openings, an insulating base within said shell engaging said bushings to prevent theirmoving inwardly 1n said openings, a threaded socket-shell in each of said bushings, means supported by said socket-shells for electrically connectin said shells together, 'and means carried lgliysaid base for conducting current to the center lterminals of the lamps.

5. In a plural lamp-holding device,`a calsing having a circularly-arranged series of openings, a threaded socket-shell in each of said openings, a base within said casing,

means carried by said base for 'conducting 115 cui-rent to the center terminals of lamps carried by said shells, and a pluralityot' metallic strips, each arranged to mechanically and electrically connect a pair of sockets together,

a plurality of said strips crossing each other 1.20

and being electrically connected at their crossing point. i

(5. In a plural lamp-holding device, a casing circumfercntially supported and having lamp-receiving openings, a 'threaded shell in '125 each of said openings, supported by 'said shell and insulated therefrom, atongue 'cxtcnding from each of said threaded shells, means extending diametrically across said -caswr a"d elcctricall connectin theton ues of oppositely-arranged threaded shells, means for electricall)7 dia1net1ically-eXtending connectors together '.at their crossing point, a binding terminal for said connectors, a vbase within said casing supported l and a lampengaglng contact carried by said base.

and beingsecnred together at such point, a-

binding terminal common to all of said connecting members, a contact-carrying base,

and means independent of said Connecting members for secn'ringvsaid base 1n posltlon.

S. In a plurallamp-holding device, a casconnecting a plurality of said independently of said 'connectors 7. In a plural lamp-holding device, a cas.

ing having a eircularly-arranged series of openings, a threaded socket-shell in each of said openings, means for conducting current to the center terminals of lamps carried by said shells, a plurality of metallic' strips, each.

arranged to connect a pair of sockets together, arranged to cross each other, and a hollow rivet/securing two of said strips t0- gether, said hollow rivet being interiorly threaded and carrying a binding-screw, a

contact-carrying base in said casing, and4 means independent of said strips for preventing movement of said base in said casing.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses. t y

REUBEN l. BENJAMIN. lVi tnesses I. N. L. FARRAR, 'l C. L. lloritme 

